Carlos Alcaraz reveals why he called the physio on court during his third-round win at the US Open

Carlos Alcaraz extended his winning streak with an impressive performance in round three.

The Spanish star made light work of his first two opponents in New York, defeating Reilly Opelka and Mattia Bellucci in straight sets.

In doing so, he advanced to round three of the US Open, where he met Italy’s Luciano Darderi, the 32nd seed.

Easing past the 23-year-old, Alcaraz won 6-2, 6-4, 6-0, booking his place in the last 16.

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There were, however, worrying signs for the world number two during the second set, when he called the physio on court.

After the match, Alcaraz explained why he asked for help and updated fans on his fitness levels.

Carlos Alcaraz asked the physio to ‘take care of his knee’ but insists he’s not worried

Mary Joe Fernandez questioned the Spaniard about his decision to call the physio during the post-match interview, to which Alcaraz provided the following response.

“No, I’m feeling good,” he said.

“I just asked for the physio when he broke my serve, in the last point, I felt something that was not working well in the knee, but after five, six points it was gone.

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“I just asked for the physio just to take care of the knee because there was one set left, so I had to be ready to be good, feeling good physically.

“I’m going to talk to my team, but I’m not worried about it.”

Alcaraz seemed to have more trouble with the schedule, having to play his match at 11.30 in the early session.

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“I just tried to start awake, starting at 11.30 is a schedule that I’m not used to playing, so my first goal was to start well, start focused, to start with energy, with a good rhythm,” he said.

“I think I started pretty well, just pushing him to the limit, trying to play long rallies, trying to get a good rhythm with the serve, with the return, I think I did pretty well.

“After that, just keep it going. Today I just played great tennis, a great performance in general.

“I’m not an early morning person; for me, it was difficult to wake up in the morning.”

When he does wake up, Alcaraz often goes golfing on his days off at major tournaments, something the 22-year-old believes is crucial to his on-court performances.

“I’m just trying to find the good things about switching off my mind, not thinking about tennis, thinking about everything else, to feel good when I’m off the court,” he said.

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“Here in New York, it’s a little bit difficult to find spots where I can feel relaxed, but golf is one of the sports that I can feel relaxed, feel calm, and have fun off the court.

“Then when I step on the court I can play my best tennis, play with a smile on my face, with joy, which for me is really important.”

Alcaraz was certainly smiling after that performance, extending his winning streak to nine matches.

Carlos Alcaraz extends winning streak

The five-time major champion has now won nine consecutive matches on the ATP Tour, a run that stretches back to the beginning of the Cincinnati Open.

Alcaraz will be confident of picking up win number ten when he plays Arthur Rinderknech in the fourth round on Sunday, August 31.

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